Materials having nanoscopic structures are very attractive due to their potential application in the fields of low dielectric materials, catalysis, membrane separation, molecular engineering, photonics, bio-substrates, and various other fields. Several methods have been proposed to synthesize materials having nanoscopic structures. Typically, the synthetic methodologies revolve around techniques using organic or inorganic polymeric molecules as templates, phase separation processes involving binary mixtures, and multi-step templating chemical reactions among others.
Materials having nanoscopic structures and the methods of synthesis thereof have drawbacks that make each less than desirable. Typically, the methods are unable to provide materials in large quantities, very complex in execution, and economically prohibitive for scale-up. The materials synthesized often are mechanically weak, non-uniform in structure, and are of little use in their intended field of application. Therefore, a need exists for materials and methods of formation thereof that overcome at least one of the aforementioned deficiencies.